‘Crack’-ing the case

Why were seven members of three law enforcement agencies giving a Milam County Sheriff’s Department patrol car a detailed search Thursday afternoon at a Rockdale intersection? Unlikely as it seems, they were looking for crack cocaine evidence. The unusual incident started when Deputy Mike Hoyt radioed for help, saying a drug suspect was resisting arrest. That call brought more than a dozen law officers to the corner of Rice and Belton where Hoyt said the suspect had tried to swallow suspected crack cocaine. From left, Hoyt, State Troopers Erik Gaston and Donald Delukie Jr., Rockdale Police Ofc. Steven Cooper, Troopers Mark Berry and David Yarbrough and Rockdale Police Lt. J. D. Newlin search the car and street. Tammy Snyder Phillips, 34, of Thorndale, was charged with possession of crack cocaine (less than one gram) and remains in jail in lieu of $17,500 bond.
Reporter/Mike Brown